The United States has the lowest share of small businesses of any OECD country. — Washington Post

in France, when a company grows to 50 employees, it has to set up a Works Council that coordinates with employees on workplace conditions. And so “many small French companies limit themselves to… 49 employees.”

The US Department of Defense is the world’s largest employer, by far, with 40% more employees than the Chinese People’s Liberation Army . — The Economist

Student loans for for-profit universities are about as safe as sub-prime. — @rortybomb

The story isn’t all bad. Groupon gained market share in North America in August compared with top rival LivingSocial, Yipit Data reports. Meanwhile Facebook, a potentially worrisome competitor, recently shut down its daily-deals product.